Undertaking appliance for covering portions of the torso



Jan. 17, 1956 R. E. PIATT UNDERTAKING APPLIANCE FOR COVERING PORTIONS OF THE TORSO Filed Oct. 2, 1952 k 20 IN VEN TOR.

Ralph. E- Piafi United States Patent UNDERTAKING APPLIANCE FOR COVERING PORTIONS OF THE TORSO Ralph E. Piatt, Washington, Pa.

Application October 2, 1952, Serial No. 312,817

2 Claims. (CI. 27-21 This invention relates to undertaking and more specifically to an appliance in the nature of a covering or tab for the natural openings in the torso of an embalmed body.

An important object of the invention is to provide a covering or tab as described which will absorb fluid discharge from the torso and thus render garments upon the torso clean and unspotted.

Another important object is to provide such a covering which will tend to prevent any odors from the fluid discharge referred to above from permeating the clothing or air adjacent the clothing.

A further important object is to provide a covering as described which is not bulky and, when in place, is not noticeable upon the clothed corpse.

Furthermore, an important object is to provide an appliance which, while effective for the purposes described, is not expensive to manufacture and is easily applied to the body.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent during the course of the following detailed description of the invention, taken in connection with the accompanying drawing, forming a part of this disclosure, and in which drawing:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of the new covering applied to a human body.

Fig. 2 is a plan of the body-contacting face of the covermg.

Fig. 3 is a transverse section, substantially on the line 3-3 of Fig. 2.

Figs. 4 and 5 are fragmentary longitudinal sections substantially on their respective lines of Fig. 2.

In the drawing wherein for the purpose of illustration is shown a preferred embodiment of the invention and wherein similar reference characters designate corresponding parts throughout the several views, the letter A designates the new covering or tab and B a human body.

The covering or tab A includes an elongated outer covering portion with side edges 11 and end edges 12. The material of this portion 10 is substantially impervious to any fluid which may be discharged from a torso and is, preferably, a thin, readily flexible and smooth-surfaced plastic. An example of a desirable size of the portion 10 is substantially thirty-four inches long and eleven inches wide.

Carried by the portion 10 is a pad or body portion 15 diposed upon one face of the portion 10, to cover one major part thereof, leaving the other major part of the portion 10 uncovered, as shown in Fig. 2. This portion 15 is composed of a section 16 of absorbent cotton or the like, backed by a section 17 of cotton or the like, which is substantially non-absorbent to liquids, and both covered by a section 18 of gauze or the like. This portion 15, which may be substantially eighteen inches long and eight inches wide, is disposed with its outer end edge 19 closely adjacent one end edge of the covering portion 10 but so that an edge portion at this edge of the cover portion may be folded or doubled over the adjacent 2,730,788 Patented Jan. 17, 1956 "ice end edge part of the portion 15 as in Fig. 5. The section 16 tends to absorb liquids and some gases: and the section 17 while not absorbing liquids does absorb or imprison gases.

There is also provided means 20 to secure the covering portion and pad 15 to the torso and this means is shown as a suitable length of tape 21 which preferably extends, at its intermediate part 22, transversely of the covering portion 10 and below the doubled-over end edge portion of the covering portion, as shown in Fig. 5, with its longitudinal axis substantially normal to the longitudinal axis of the covering portion 10. The length of the tape may be substantially fifty inches.

Means, such as a single row of stitches 25, is provided to stitch, at the same time, the adjacent end portion of the pad 15 to the adjacent end part of the covering portion 10 together and the tape 21 to the covering portion 10.

The opposite end portion of the pad 15 may be secured to the covering portion 10 as by a single row of stitches 30. Otherwise, the pad is not secured to the covering portion.

In use, the end portion of the flattened out covering portion 10 containing the stitches 25 is placed with the pad 15 uppermost, at the lumbar region 35 at the back of the torso, with the ends of the tape 21 outstretched, and the other major part of the covering portion 10 drawn between the legs 36, over the hypogastric and umbilical regions, smoothed out, and the ends of the tape 21 tied, for example as in Fig. 1. This places the end part of the pad 15 well down near the crotch and there is no substantial thickness of material over the umbilical region. This is possible because the pad 15 ends well inwardly of one end of the covering portion 10 (for example, ends thirteen inches from the end of the covering portion).

It will be noted in Fig. 2 that the sides of the pad 15 fall short of the side edges of the covering portion 10, whereby there is no portion of the pad showing or in contact with garments worn by the corpse when the covering or tab A is in place.

The edges of the covering portion 10 hug the adjacent portions of the torso snugly, partly because of the shape of the covering and because the pad 15 is disposed, as described, with reference to the covering portion.

Various changes may be made to the form of the invention herein shown and described without departing from the spirit of the invention or scope of the claims.

What is claimed is:

1. An undertaking appliance for permanent application to the lower portion of the torso, said appliance including an outermost covering portion comprising a thin flexible substantially fluid-impervious elongated sheet of plastic material having side and end edges and defining two elongated major parts; a pad, containing fluid-absorbent material, disposed upon the inner face of the sheet to extend over one of said major parts and having side and end edges, with one end edge portion of the sheet doubled over an adjacent end edge portion of the pad, the opposite end edge portion of the pad being disposed well inwardly of the opposite end edge of the sheet, the other major part of said sheet having an area "sufficient to contact and spread over the hypogastric and umbilical regions of the torso when said other major part is spread out and applied thereto; an elongated tape with its intermediate portion extending transversely along a face of said sheet in the Zone of the doubled-over end edge portion of the sheet, and means securing said intermediate portion of said tape and the doubled over end edge portion of the sheet and the adjacent end edge portion of the pad to the sheet, the free end portions of said tape being of sufficient length to be extended over the spread out major part of said sheet and secured together thereon.

2. An undertaking appliance for permanent application to the lower portion of the torso, said appliance including an outermost covering portion comprising a thin flexible, substantially fluid-impervious elongated sheetof plastic material having side and end edges; a pad, containing fluid-absorbent material, disposed upon one part of the inner face of the sheet with one end edge portion of the sheet doubled over an adjacent end edge portion of the pad'and fluid-absorbent material; the other part of the sheet being of an area sufiicient to contact and spread out over the hypogastric and umbilical regions of the torso when said other part is spread out and applied thereto; an elongated tape with its intermediate portion extending transversely along the under face of the sheet in the zone of the doubled-over end edge portion of the References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 812,486 Dix Feb. 13, 1906 1,159,362 Cornell Nov. 9, 1915 1,843,037 Mathey Jan. 26, 1932 2,062,978 King Dec. 1, 1936 

